IOU Financial Has Profitable Q1

IOU Financial reported a net income of $797,198 (CAD) in Q1, according to their latest quarterly financial statements. Despite primarily lending to US-based small businesses, IOU is headquartered in Canada, where the company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange. IOU’s market cap at the market’s close on Friday, was less than $15 million. For comparison’s sake, rival small business lender OnDeck, currently has a market cap of $438 million.

IOU originated $24.5M (CAD) in loans in Q1, up $2.5M from the same period last year. $21.8M of those loans were sourced “via relationships with third-party business loan brokers,” according to their report.

The company proudly noted a 50% reduction in their provision for loan losses. “This decrease is primarily attributable to lower defaults by borrowers as well as by the smaller size of the loan portfolio,” the report said. “The improvement in the provision for loan losses (net of recoveries) is a result of changes made in 2017 in the Company’s lending policies and in the loan servicing and collection process, which includes an aggressive litigation strategy against businesses who default on their loan obligations.”

In a published statement, IOU CEO Phil Marleau said, “Following the positive results in the fourth quarter of 2017, IOU has delivered even stronger results in the first quarter of 2018. This is a testament to the measures taken to bring down loan defaults and control costs. IOU expects to continue to grow loan originations and generate profits over the coming quarters.”